Ecology

Types of Degrees Ecology Majors Are Getting

The following table lists how many ecology graduations there were for each degree level during the last year for which data was available.

Education Level	Number of Grads
Doctor’s Degree	174
Master’s Degree	152
Graduate Certificate	10

What Ecology Majors Need to Know

People with careers related to ecology were asked what knowledge areas, skills, and abilities were important for their jobs. They weighted these areas on a scale of 1 to 5 with 5 being the highest.

Knowledge Areas for Ecology Majors

According to O*NET survey takers, a major in ecology should prepare you for careers in which you will need to be knowledgeable in the following areas:

• English Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
• Biology - Knowledge of plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, interdependencies, and interactions with each other and the environment.
• Mathematics - Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
• Administration and Management - Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources.
• Computers and Electronics - Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.

Skills for Ecology Majors

A major in ecology prepares you for careers in which the following skill-sets are crucial:

• Reading Comprehension - Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents.
• Writing - Communicating effectively in writing as appropriate for the needs of the audience.
• Active Listening - Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
• Speaking - Talking to others to convey information effectively.
• Critical Thinking - Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.

Abilities for Ecology Majors

Ecology majors often go into careers where the following abilities are vital:

• Written Comprehension - The ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing.
• Oral Comprehension - The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
• Oral Expression - The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.
• Inductive Reasoning - The ability to combine pieces of information to form general rules or conclusions (includes finding a relationship among seemingly unrelated events).
• Written Expression - The ability to communicate information and ideas in writing so others will understand.

What Can You Do With a Ecology Major?

People with a ecology degree often go into the following careers:

Job Title	Job Growth Rate	Median Salary
Biological Science Professors	15.1%	$82,550
Clinical Research Coordinators	9.9%	$123,860
Life Scientists	9.0%	$78,190
Molecular and Cellular Biologists	8.0%	$79,590
Natural Sciences Managers	9.9%	$123,860
Water Resource Specialists	9.9%	$123,860
Zoologists and Wildlife Biologists	7.7%	$63,420

Who Is Getting a Master’s Degree in Ecology?

The major attracts more women than men. About 61% of the recent graduates in this field are female.

Racial-Ethnic Diversity

At the countrywide level, the racial-ethnic distribution of ecology majors is as follows:

Race/Ethnicity	Number of Grads
Asian	3
Black or African American	3
Hispanic or Latino	9
White	118
International Students	8
Other Races/Ethnicities	11

Geographic Diversity

Students from other countries are interested in Ecology, too. About 5.3% of those with this major are international students.

Amount of Education Required for Careers Related to Ecology

Some careers associated with ecology require an advanced degree while some may not even require a bachelor’s. Whatever the case may be, pursuing more education usually means that more career options will be available to you.

Find out what the typical degree level is for ecology careers below.

Education Level	Percentage of Workers
Less than a High School Diploma	0.5%
High School Diploma - or the equivalent (for example, GED)	1.5%
Post-Secondary Certificate - awarded for training completed after high school (for example, in agriculture or natural resources, computer services, personal or culinary services, engineering technologies, healthcare, construction trades, mechanic and repair technologies, or precision production)	1.3%
Associate’s Degree (or other 2-year degree)	1.8%
Bachelor’s Degree	37.3%
Post-Baccalaureate Certificate - awarded for completion of an organized program of study; designed for people who have completed a Baccalaureate degree but do not meet the requirements of academic degrees carrying the title of Master.	2.6%
Master’s Degree	22.7%
Post-Master’s Certificate - awarded for completion of an organized program of study; designed for people who have completed a Master’s degree but do not meet the requirements of academic degrees at the doctoral level.	1.0%
Doctoral Degree	18.2%
Post-Doctoral Training	13.1%

Online Ecology Programs

The following table lists the number of programs by degree level, along with how many schools offered online courses in the field.

Degree Level	Colleges Offering Programs	Colleges Offering Online Classes
Certificate (Less Than 1 Year)	0	0
Certificate (1-2 years)	2	0
Certificate (2-4 Years)	0	0
Associate’s Degree	1	0
Bachelor’s Degree	2	0
Post-Baccalaureate	0	0
Master’s Degree	30	0
Post-Master’s	3	0
Doctor’s Degree (Research)	27	0
Doctor’s Degree (Professional Practice)	0	0
Doctor’s Degree (Other)	0	0

Majors Related to Ecology

You may also be interested in one of the following majors related to ecology.

Major	Number of Grads
Epidemiology	3,179
Marine Biology	2,368
Evolutionary Biology	807
Environmental Biology	484
Conservation Biology	433
Other Ecology, Evolution & Systematics Biology	333
Evolutionary Biology	178
Aquatic Biology/Limnology	96
Epidemiology and Biostatistics	80
Population Biology	29
Biological Systematics	14

References

*The racial-ethnic minorities count is calculated by taking the total number of students and subtracting white students, international students, and students whose race/ethnicity was unknown. This number is then divided by the total number of students at the school to obtain the racial-ethnic minorities percentage.

• College Factual
• College Scorecard
• National Center for Education Statistics
• O*NET Online
• U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
• Usual Weekly Earnings of Wage and Salary Workers First Quarter 2020
• Image Credit: By Ernst Haeckel under License

More about our data sources and methodologies.